As a criminal attorney for 23 years, Muhammad Ibn Bashir has seen a lot, both in the courtroom and behind closed doors with clients, many of whom are young men of color.

"There are basically three things to consider when discussing the incarceration of young black men,'' he said in an e-mail interview. "They are as follows: your own actions, the actions of others and the perception that young black male equals criminal.''

'Raw Law: An Urban Guide to Criminal Justice' lays bare details behind America's criminal justice system. In 2009, 563,500 black men were housed in state and federal prisons, according to the Bureau of Justice's December 2010 report, the largest number were between the ages of 25 to 39.

Additionally, Bashir has dealt with some of the nation's most difficult cases, including serving as co-counsel in the World Trade Center bombing trial. He talks to BlackVoices.com about his new book and his thoughts on the criminal justice system.

BlackVoices.com: To what do you attribute the large number of incarcerated black men, and why is mass incarceration so prevalent within the black community?

Muhammad Ibn Bashir: Many of the young black males that I see in criminal justice are there based on their own foolish conduct. That conduct is usually based on their emotions and/or their ignorance of the system. No one is teaching our children to think critically, and thus, all they have as a frame of reference when confronted with a decision is emotion. Ignorance of your own plight and your surroundings is a recipe for disaster and since America has always fought against the education of young black males, incarceration is a disaster waiting to happen.

Mass incarceration is the product of a very American legal concept, which was articulated by the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case that "A black man has no right that a white man is bound to respect." Slavery as an institution meant that white males did not have to compete for jobs, homes, land or families with their black male counterparts. White America profited enormously from that peculiar institution. What would make them want to change it? Morality has never trumped capitalism and it still does not.

'Deep Throat Diva' is a game changer in the erotica book genre.

The novel, written by the author who writes under the nom de plume Cairo, ups the ante in the style that was popularized nearly 14 years ago by his publisher, Zane.

The book is a great and sexy read, but not in an Anaïs Nin sort of way. More in a leave nothing, like really nothing, to the imagination sort of way. And if that's your thing, you won't want to miss 'Deep Throat Diva.'

It is the story of Pasha, a successful hairstylist who engages in online hook-ups with strangers while her fiancé, Jasper, is locked up in prison. Since she vowed not to have intercourse while he was gone, she justifies that having oral sex is still being faithful.

When her gangster fiancé returns home, her online life continues to beckon, forcing her to make serious choices.

Cairo chatted recently with BlackVoices.com.

BlackVoices: All of your books are sexually explicit, such as 'Daddy Long Stroke' and 'The Kat Trap.' Are you upping the ante for erotica? What does your publisher, Zane, the queen of erotica, have to say about all of this?

Cairo: Yes, in some ways, I believe I am most definitely upping the ante. But I also believe I'm writing things that many people already think about (or dream about) doing to their partners, but don't actually have the guts to. So, through my raw, raunchy writing, I'm allowing readers to live vicariously through all of my characters.

Truthfully, Zane has been one of my biggest supporters. She believes in me. And she believes in my ability to bring the heat.

Before his untimely death in 1997, The Notorious B.I.G. frequently made headlines for his bad boy antics. Through his music and personae, he carefully cultivated a thug image born of the gritty streets of Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn.

He was not known as a man of compassion. That was until now. In 'The Last Listening Party of The Notorious B.I.G.,' LaJoyce Brookshire, the former publicist for Arista Records, his record label, and Elijah Muhammad, an entertainment photographer, show a different side of the artist during the listening party for the album 'Life After Death,' which was released 14 years ago today (March 25, 1997).

Thirty eight striking never-before-released images show him in repose, in pensive thought and laughing with friends, including Sean "Puffy" Combs. No one would have thought that two weeks later Biggie would be dead, murdered during a drive-by shooting in Los Angeles.

Nigerian author Chika Unigwe marks her debut in the United States with 'On Black Sisters Street,' a masterful sketch of four women from Africa who make their way to Belgium in hopes of building better lives for themselves. Unfortunately, they end up working on Antwerp's Zwartezusterstraat as prostitutes, lured there by false promises and empty hopes.

Unigwe draws a rich tapestry of arresting characters that will remain with readers long after they cease reading the pages. One character, Sisi, was coaxed to Zwartezusterstraat, or Black Sisters Street, by a Belgian businessman who made her an offer she couldn't refuse. Full of hope and expectations, she leaves the dreary and destitute streets of Lagos only to find the same and worse in Antwerp.

Unigwe, who lives in Turnhout, Belgium, with her husband and four sons, spent years researching the novel and even dressed in skimpy clothes and thigh-high boot to gather details for this must-read story.

BV on Books caught up with Unigwe recently via e-mail to discuss her novel, what it was like to walk alongside the women on the cobblestone streets of the red-light district and what she's up to next.

BV: Are you excited about your U.S. debut novel?
Cnika Unigwe: I am very excited. America is an important market, and I feel very privileged to be published there and by Random House, no less.

Dubbed by Publisher's Weekly as the reigning queen of urban fiction, ex-con Vickie M. Stringer has returned with the third sequel to her red hot 'Dirty' series, 'Dirtier Than Ever.'

True to form, the novel is filled with wild twists and turns that will leave readers on tenterhooks as they turn the page. This time, we find the dynamic trio engaged in a full-on game of life and death: the lovely and seductive Red Gomez, who will stop at nothing to get her way; Bacon, her kingpin boyfriend; and Quentin Carter, the true love of Red's life, who is angling to get out of Detroit's treacherous street game.

BlackVoices.com catches up with the founder of Triple Crown, one of the most successful African American book publishers, to talk about the sequel, her life and the publishing industry.

Known for his hard-bitten Brooklyn persona, it might seem a little intimidating to work with Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Spike Lee.

Not according to his wife, Tonya Lewis Lee, who recently authored a third children's book with him called 'Giant Steps to Change the World,' which was illustrated by Sean Qualls.

"Not everybody steps to Spike the way that I do,'' the missus told BlackVoices.com recently about their creative process. "I'm not sure if he is used to that. It's good because he knows I'm being real with him and I know he's being real with me.''

To be sure, she may have a little more leverage than most. After all, she is his wife and the mother of his children. But the creative process is still important to the world-renowned filmmaker and actor, who has produced over 35 films.

Lewis Lee is no lightweight herself. A lawyer, who graduated from the University of Virginia, she has worked in television production at Nickelodeon. She also created an animated series for Disney through her company, Madstone Co., Inc.

Other children's book collaborations between the couple are 'Please, Baby, Please' and 'Please, Puppy, Please.' They live in New York City with their son and daughter.

Mrs. Lewis Lee chatted with us about their latest project, 'Giant Steps to Change the World,' an inspiring picture book that highlights the works of historical leaders who brought change through activism. It is a solid and colorfully illustrated book that parents should read with children of all ages.

When you talk to award-winning author Walter Mosley about books, be prepared to discuss literature and writing on a serious level. When BlackVoices.com caught up to the best-selling author, the discussion ranged from Faust to celebrated characters in his own personal works, including Soupspoon Wise, Fearless Jones, Leonid McGill and, of course, his latest fictional work, 'Ptolemy Grey.'

Grey is the unfading protagonist in 'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey,' a trenchant and absorbing look at man's struggle with immortality. The perennial challenge is addressed through the life of 91-year-old Grey, who is forgotten by his loved ones and lives out his last days in a cluttered Los Angeles apartment carpeted with remnants of his former self. Then he meets Robyn, who, at only 17 years old, gifts him with a metamorphosing friendship.

A New York City resident who grew up in the Watts section of Los Angeles, Mosley talks with us in a candid interview about character and plot development, race in America, love and what's headed next to your literary shelves from one of today's most celebrated African American authors.

BV on Books: How did you come to write 'The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey'?
Walter Mosley: My mother had dementia. And for five years, as an only child and her being an only child and having no one else to care for her, I had to learn to communicate with her in a really deft way. She was in Iran, and I was in New York. She was incapable of taking care of herself. One, I had to pretend that she could and, two, make sure that the world around her kept her safe. It was a lot of work. In doing that work, I learned the language of dementia. I had the language in my head. That's how I decided to write about Ptolemy Grey.

From Nikki Giovanni and Eric Jerome Dickey to Isabel Wilkerson and Randal Pinkett, we reached out to some of our favorite authors and asked them to share the books that touched them in 2010.

Giovanni writes an unparalleled jazzy review of Jay-Z's 'Decoded,' while Wilkerson delivers a moving review of one doctor's exploration of cancer. Superpublicist Patti Webster stayed true to religious form with her pick about two clergymen from different faiths. Pinkett tackles Tom Burrell's forward-thinking book about how racism in the African American community is not really a problem but rather a response. And street-lit diva Nikki Turner offered up a title about personal finances that will definitely stand the rest of time.

Join us for a look at the books that mattered in 2010.